School On the Islands
by ElunaX12
Summary: Edward takes up a job offer and moves to Hawaii to teach at one of the schools. What chaos will ensue? And what happens when the holiday seasons causes sparks to fly between him and a very unwomanly girl? Based after C.O.S. Holiday themed. DEAD STORY.
1. Prologue

Sure, not exactly a creative plot, but I was bored. Yay for my boredom. Don't hate me.

* * *

The year was 2007. Thanksgiving had just ended, and the snow and the cold was almost too much for Edward to bear. In the years he'd lived in this world, he hadn't aged a bit. It baffled him beyond belief, but not a wrinkle appeared on his features. He didn't develop arthritis, or any other sort of disease that came with age. 

After Alfons had died, Ed had given up all hope of ever returning to Amestris. Tired of living in Europe, he traveled to the Americas, where he lead a calm life of a scientific engineer in California. Actually, he never stayed with one job, and was always hopping from one University to another to conceal the fact that he never aged.

This world confounded him. People would often stop him in the streets to say "Great Edward cosplay!" and then go on their way. He'd wondered what that meant, and so he'd gone to try to find out just what the heck they were talking about. When he'd found the anime, he was absolutely stunned at it, and the way that it chronicled his life so well. Except, of course, for the movie. That wasn't even remotely true, except for his finding Alfons.

However, he tried to not let him bother him. Actually, he got quite used to it, and only accepted it as one of the quirks of the world. Only a month before, he'd quit one of his jobs, having been working their for five years. People had begun to question his age, but he'd politely shrug off the question, and decided that it was time for change. The only trouble was that there were no more facilities in California he hadn't already worked at. So, he decided to change state.

Edward sighed with relief as he exited the airport, his only luggage being the duffle bag that was slung over his shoulder. He removed a map from the back pocket of his jeans, opening it up to study the island. He'd decided to move to Hawaii; Oahu, to be exact. He was due for a meeting with a school that he hoped to be soon working at. Over the years, he'd gathered a variety of degrees from various colleges, teaching being one of them.

"Saint Francis School," he muttered to himself, checking over the map. "In Manoa, next to the University..." He found the valley on the map, took out a red pen, and circled it. The drive from the airport wasn't too far, and he set off to the car rental to claim a vehicle.

* * *

Yes. I have decided that Ed can drive. He's of legal age, right!? 


	2. Welcome To The Faculty

Hrmm. I'unno, just read the darn thing. And review afterwards! Or else no more story!

* * *

"You must be the new Science teacher," a very short, but commanding woman said from behind her desk. "Good. You're starting today."

"Today? But... what about an interview?" Edward had only been at the school for five minutes, and already he was under work.

"Classes will be starting in ten minutes, and we need you to start working as quickly as possible." The woman stood from her desk. "We've run short on teachers, you see. We've had two of them quit this year alone, the Science teacher being one of them."

"Why'd she leave?" An innocent enough question, but one that seemed to hold a good deal of dread.

"Oh, she never specified a reason. Something about the eight grade class, though, which you'll be teaching first thing this morning." She went over to him, handing a schedule to him. "We follow a modulator setup. Today is Day Two. Just follow the bar downward for the day. The times of every class are on the far left. The empty spaces are for lunches, or anything else you may have to do."

"Uh... okay..." Ed's mind was being a bit overloaded. "I'll... just go get ready, then." And he left the office.

As he headed down the open halls, he began to notice a few things, one being that all the girls were giving him... _looks_. That, and the fact that they were all wearing uniforms. Most of them were wearing skirts and blue polo shirts, some wearing white shirts. Occasionally, he saw one wearing shorts instead.

Turning a corner, he saw someone sitting on the side, nose buried into an Algebra book. She looked up briefly, blinked at him, and began gathering her things. She looked to be a senior, but what really made her stand out, was the fact that she was wearing long, dark pants.

Figuring that she'd just decided to pack up and go somewhere else, he paid little mind to her as he unlocked the door to the classroom he'd be working in. It didn't look too bad... Six long, three-person desks in the front, four in the back, separated by a half wall down the middle. It was freezing cold, too, a sharp contrast to the relatively warm air outside.

As he made his way across the carpeted room to a particularly cluttered desk in the corner of the front of the room, he set his things down, glancing at the laptop that was also on the desk. A sticky note was stuck to it, and he pulled it off to read it.

_To Mister Edward,  
This laptop will be used to input student grades. If you have any questions, please ask me. I'm in the media center, which is just to the left of your room.  
-Sean Connors_

Well, at least these people were nice. Just as he was beginning to settle in, he heard a loud _thud_ from somewhere in the room. Looking up, he saw the same girl from outside dropping her backpack on the floor. A giant binder stood atop the desk, with the same Algebra book and notebook on top of it. But what really annoyed him, was the fact that she was so much taller than him.

"Are you here the for the class? He asked through gritted teeth. The height difference was really bugging him.

"Mhm," she said, plopping down into a chair. "And that makes _you_ the new science teacher. Geez, Miss D quit already? Oh well, whatever."

After that, they largely ignored each other. Ed was looking over his new schedule, and kept glancing up at the clock. When the five-to bell rang, the door opened again, allowing two Asian-looking girls through. One took a seat on the front table, and the other sat down next to the first girl. They were both wearing skirts.

"Savannah, how the heck do you get here earlier than us everyday?" the girl next to the blonde asked, dropping her things onto the desk.

"Magical magic, duh, Erin," the tall girl--no, Savannah--responded, in a matter-of-fact tone. "Didya write anything?"

"No, my mom had me grounded from the Random Book for the weekend," Erin responded, as the other girl from the front went back to them. "How was your weekend, Lauren?"

"It was good," Lauren responded simply. "What about you guys?"

"Nanowrimo is getting the better of me," Savannah muttered, almost in a growl. "I'm out of inspiration!"

"Hey, hey," Erin interrupting, gesturing for silence. "The rest of the class is coming in. I need to tell you guys something later."

After Lauren returned to the front of the room, the rest of the class filed in, most of them pausing at the door for a moment to give Ed a look. He remained quiet the whole time, waiting until everyone was seated, and the second bell rang. Standing, he picked up a pen, and began writing his name on the board. He clicked the cap back on, put it down, and turned to the class.

"My name is Edward Dune," he said loudly, so the girls in the far back could hear him. "I will be your new science teacher, as you can already see."

"You're hot," a dark girl said from the front, and she began to laugh, the rest of the class joining in a moment later. Erin and Savannah looked at each other, shrugged, and turned back to look at him.

"... Okay then," he said, blinking at her. "Anyways, I was wondering if someone could tell me what you were doing before your last teacher quit." "Science project," Savannah said immediately, not even raising her hand. "She was having us do a hypothesis, introduction, purpose, materials list, and... what was the last one... oh yeah, procedure."

"... Right, then. Go and do whatever you guys do for that, then," he said. It had always been this way when he'd taught classes with science project before. "If you need any help, just ask me."

Sitting back down, the class erupted into life. Some left the room to go over to the media center or the library. Most of them stayed, and one girl began to burn incense. He had no clue what kind of a science project that could be, but he didn't question it. Those three girls retreated to the back, Savannah complaining of a headache. They took along only a few things: a couple of notebooks, a purplish spiral book, and a blue, flowery pencil case. Well, Erin brought the last two. Lauren took one notebook, and Savannah brought nothing. Okay, so she brought a pencil, but that was it.

Ed was curious about what they were doing back there, especially after he saw the many multicolored pens that were being put to work in the purple book by Erin. Savannah and Lauren occasionally broke out into a fit of quiet snickers. Eventually, his curiosity got the better of him, and he made his way over to the deserted back. As he was going, Erin quickly closed the book, stowing it away in her lap, and flipping open her notebook. By the time he was at the desk, there was no sign of the colored pens, either.

"What's your science project, then?" he questioned, leaning on the desk. Savannah gave him a slightly annoyed look, since he was leaning into _her_ portion of the desk.

"Whether or not mice get fat off junk food," Erin answered, since Savannah was too busy being angry. "We aren't letting them use exercise wheels, either. Our control mice are being given regular mouse food, and have access to a wheel."

"Have you concluded anything yet?" He took a seat, trying to avoid eye contact with Savannah, since sitting down made him shorter than her.

"No, because Erin only started _last week_," Savannah growled, giving him a glare. "And what the heck kind of last name is _Dune_?"

"Mine," was his smart reply, giving her a general look of dislike. Whether it was the height difference or her attitude, there was something about her he didn't like...

"First teacher I've ever had to call Mister Dune..." She shrugged, turning back to Erin.

"Well, at least it's better than Miss D, right?" Erin added, almost with an accusing tone. "I swear, if you hadn't brought that horse to school and called it our science project!"

"Hey, she was a nice horse!" the blonde whined, looking hurt. "And you gotta admit, I looked nice on her, didn't I?"

"She was huge!" Lauren exclaimed, adding a snicker onto the end of the statement. "She didn't even fit through the door!"

"I'll just let you get back to your work." Ed stood, going off to supervise the other projects, and check their progress.

By the end of the class, just about everyone in the room had a headache. The incense had spread to the farthest corners, and no one was safe. Someone started to dry-heave five minutes to the bell, and had to be rushed off to the nurse before anything could actually come up. Even Ed had a slight headache when he sat down at the end of the class, glancing over at his schedule to see what he had next. It happened to be homeroom, and the eighth graders were staying with him. He groaned quietly to himself.

"Good morning students, today is November twenty-sixth, Day Two," an unusually perky voice called on the intercom. "We hope you all had an awesome Thanksgiving!"

No one was even paying attention. Actually, neither was Ed. He was too busy trying to figure out the new laptop. The cursed thing didn't even have a proper mouse! It was insane! Then again, Ed had never actually had to use a laptop before. He'd seen them in stores, watched other college students working with them, but he'd never wanted one for himself. Computers, in his opinion, stayed at home, on a desk, with a separate keyboard, monitor, and a mouse, for heaven's sake!

Eventually, one of the students(someone named Wealth. She kept trying to hit on him, but always broke down into a fit of laughter, along with the rest of the class) helped him to figure it out. Finally, he could access the grades, and what he found was rather saddening. Most were either failing, or about to do so, and whether it was because their last teacher sucked, or they were just bad kids, or both(he dearly hoped not), he decided he'd work his hardest to get those grades up. _Every single one_.

* * *

Odd chapter, neh? Ah well. Review, critisize, whatever you guys do. 


	3. Lunchtime!

I got hungry when I wrote this...

* * *

Ed had decided that he highly disliked freshmen. Also, he started wondering why he'd offered to work in an all girls school. Women were absolute _menaces_. However, he had amused himself with daydreaming about Roy's reaction to the place, before one of the students nearly burned a hole through the table with acid. He was glad when the ninth graders gathered up their things and left the room, because he knew, after analyzing his schedule, that he was free for a whole _fourty-five minutes_. He left the room with a grin, eager to have a good meal.

As he headed around the campus in search of the cafeteria, he began to notice how green and pleasant the place was. Flowers and bushes grew beside the pathways, lending a calming atmosphere to the school. No students were around, and he figured that they were probably in class. Still, he wondered if any of them actually took the time to stop and appreciate the beauty of their campus.

Of course, these thoughts were quickly banished from his mind at the scent of food. Throwing open the doors of the cafeteria, he was surprised to find it nearly deserted. Only a few girls pored over their textbooks at various tables, one of them being that tall girl from the eighth grade. At first, he was puzzled at seeing her alone, since he knew her to have friends, but didn't question it, and turned his attention to the staff who worked the place, and he approached the counter.

After a look at his choices, he decided on getting a simple chicken sandwich, since it was just about all his budget offered. Between buying the house and airfare, his funds had become a bit tight. Nodding a thanks to the lunch personnel, he went over to Savannah's table, taking a seat next to her.

"Neh?" It was more a sound than a question, and her head lifted from the Algebra book. "What're you doing here?"

"Not like I had much else to do," he responded, taking a giant bite out of the sandwich. "Where're your friends?"

"Don't talk with your mouth full," she growled. "And the Algebra classes are all messed up, so sometimes we end up stuck on our own while the rest are in class."

"Why don't you ask them to change it?"

"I'm too much of a wimp," she muttered, looking back down to her work, scribbling away in the notebook.

"You don't look like the shy type." He knew she wasn't listening. Actually, she seemed to be struggling with whatever it was she was working on. "Need help?"

"No, I--" she started to protest, but he snatched her pencil away, as well as her books, taking a look at the work. "Hey!"

"Graphing, huh?" he muttered, examining what she'd done so far. "You've got your x and y-axis mixed up, see?" He looked up, and it seemed like she wanted to say something. "What?"

"I... well..." she looked up at the ceiling, looking a bit embarrassed, and cleared her throat.

"It's not that big of a deal." He laughed at her slightly, shaking his head. "I'm sure lots of girls do the same thing."

"No, it's not that... uhm..." She hesitated again, and Ed looked at her quizzically.

"Well, come on, spit it out!" Was it perhaps a crush...? No, that was absurd! Teachers weren't allowed to associate with the minors outside of school hours! Still, though...

"... I chew on that pencil." It took a while for the words to sink in, but as soon as they did, Ed wanted to puke.

"_WHAT!?_" he exclaimed, startling the rest of the students. Quickly dropping the thin sliver of orange like it had bitten him, he stood up, furiously wiping his hands on his shirt. He absolutely _abhorred_ spit! The stuff was _gross_! Next to him, Savannah broke out into a fit of laughter, and boy did it make him angry. This was _funny_ to her!? Gah!

Grabbing up his near-forgotten chicken sandwich, he fled the building, going back to his own classroom to sit and fume. He just hoped he didn't get some sort of disease from her... Maybe a disease that only came from tall people. He tried his absolute best to ignore those thoughts.

* * *

For some really weird reason, Ed's always struck me as just a little bit of a health nut. Or at least someone who doesn't like spit... Then again, who does? 


	4. Hey There Neighbor!

Ed should drive a Mustang. Ah-hah-hah-hah. I crack myself up.

* * *

Hawaii was deceivingly complicated. 

Okay, so it wasn't exactly complicated, but the streets all had really strange names, of the sort that Ed couldn't even pronounce. Oh, and the traffic was always terrible.

After school had finished for the day(it had ended with a nice little explosion in his classroom, courtesy of the seventh graders), Ed had jumped into his rental car, and began the long process of trying to find the house he'd be staying in. Thankfully, after nearly two hours of driving around, he finally managed to find the small home.

It didn't have the seaside view so many people thought of when they came to Hawaii, but he'd be willing to call it home. As sparsely furnished as it was, it radiated hominess with carpeted floors and plenty of windows. It even had a working air conditioner installed in what seemed to be the office room(it had a desk and a chair, anyway).

Once he'd settled in with the small amount of luggage he had, Ed turned his attention to the pile of papers he'd been given by the faculty. They'd instructed him to read and memorize it all by tomorrow, and after telling himself over and over that he _could do it!_, he set to work.

An hour in, there was a knock at his door, and he was rather relieved to take a break from all that paperwork. Heck, it wasn't even paperwork, it was just a terrifyingly long list of rules(most of them he thought were ludicrous. Even the teachers had to abide to a dress code!).

"Welcome to the neighborhood, blah, blah, bla--" a dull voice said when he opened the door, but both he and the speaker froze when they saw each other. Well, Ed had to look up a little.

"What are you doing here!?" they said in unison, before following with an annoyed "Hey!" from both. "Don't tell me we're neighbors!" "Stop copying me!" "I'm not!" "Knock it off already!" Eventually, after much yelling-in-unison, the two stopped long enough to catch their breaths. Ed spoke first.

"You really live around here, Savannah!?" he blurted, still disbelieving. Mentally, he was cursing his bad luck. "God! Tall people stalk _me_!"

"I'm not stalking you!" she snarled, offended. "If anything, you're the one stalking me! I've been living here for thirteen years, and you've only just moved in!" Without waiting for a response, she shoved a box of fudge into his hand, and slammed the door for him.

Ed stood there, stupefied, the box of fudge hardly registered. After a moment, he took a look at it, and checked the ingredients. At the first sign of the word 'dairy', he tossed it into the trash with a growl, and headed back to his paperwork. The stuff had probably been infected with tall people bacteria, anyways...

* * *

Ed's got the worst neighbors, don't he? 


	5. Sleepless Nights

Ed needs to work on his neighboring skills. They give him fudge, and he dumps it! Rudeness, rudeness, rudeness. I'd at least give it back!

* * *

The first night in his new home, and Ed couldn't sleep. It wasn't nerves, or anger, or an annoying headache he'd gotten earlier. The problem was a very bright, very irritating light, that lit up his small bedroom through the poorly covered window. He decided, first thing he did after work tomorrow, would be to get some proper curtains.

At first, he tried to ignore it. He hoped, with all his might, that it would just _go away_. No such luck.

He tried to hide under the blankets. Soon, he found that it was a terrible idea, because Hawaiian nights were very warm, even in November. Within five minutes, he was being suffocated by the heat, and had to throw off the sheets for a while to let the heat out. Still, that cursed light kept on going.

Half an hour of tossing and turning later, he finally gave up, threw off the sheets, and went over to the window to see just what was depriving him of so much precious sleep. His eye twitched slightly when he opened the tattered old curtains.

_Giant. Inflatable. Lighted. Snowmen._ He hated his neighbors more than ever. Also, he decided that he hated the holidays. People went crazy and did the stupidest, most annoying things. Giant inflatable lighted snowmen and all.

With a bit of Elric ingenuity, he managed to make do with using one of his shirts and a pair of clothespins to make a more suitable curtain. Now that his room was thoroughly darkened, and after tripping over a stray pair of shoes, he was able to finally get to sleep. At one in the morning.

When his alarm went off at five a.m., he wasn't particularly happy, but managed to drag himself up anyways. He dressed quickly, brushed his teeth, tied up his hair, grabbed his keys, and headed out the door an hour and a half later. All that was left was to grab his newspaper before he drove off to the school.

Just as he was opening the mailbox, he glanced over to the next door driveway, and was instantly gripped with rage. The much taller, brown-eyed girl stood across from him, likewise grabbing the paper from her own mailbox. Ed also realized, that those giant inflatable lighted snowmen were in _her_ yard. They were just deflated now. At this new fact, he gnashed his teeth together viciously.

For a full five minutes they just stood and glared at one another, both seething with dislike for the other, before they turned in unison on their heels, and stalked away. Ed went for the car, and Savannah headed back into the house.

Fine. If that would how it had to be, Ed decided, he'd have to fight overly flashy lights with overly flashy lights. He made a mental note to grab some light strings while he was buying those curtains. After work, of course. He'd be sure to make Savannah and her family have the most sleepless night they'd had in a long while.

* * *

People like to start their holiday decorating early, don't they? ... It made _me _laugh, anyways. 


	6. Getting To Know You

If you're keeping track, it's Tuesday. Bwahahah!

* * *

"Why does the scheduling suck so bad?" Ed muttered to himself, as he watched the eight graders file into the room. Yes, he had them first thing again, for two days in a row.

"Try pitying someone besides yourself!" Savannah chided from across the room as she sat down in her corner. "We have to put up with you, too!"

"Quiet! Or else I'm giving you a detention!" he snapped, giving her a venomous glare. It did the trick, and she shut up. "Today, instead of just letting you all work on those science projects, I want to get to know you a little more."

"You can get to know me!" Wealth cried, raising her hand excitedly. "I still think you're hot!"

"... Okay, I'll start with you first, then." Ed really wasn't sure how to deal with people like that girl... they made him feel just a bit out of place, which was why he'd lied about his last name. He'd seen how those fan girls acted if they got even the slightest wiff of anything "Elric-ish".

Donning a suddenly professional face, the short, dark girl stood up, facing the rest of the classroom.

"My name is Wealth, and I think that Mister Dune is hot!" she proclaimed, throwing the rest of the class into a fit of laughter.

Once they'd calmed down, Ed made a mental note to keep well away from that girl, and checked her name off the attendance list. "Alright... Nicole?"

Another, equally dark, and equally short girl stood up from the back, but remained near her seat. She seemed just a bit on the shy side.

"I'm Nicole, and I think you're hot too!" she said, before giggling and falling back over into the seat. Okay, another one to avoid.

"Right..." shaking his head, Ed ran his finger down the attendance list, and grimaced when he saw what name was next. "Savannah?"

"Eh?" she blurted, having been drawing something since class had started. "Oh, yeah, I'm Savannah, whatever."

"Say more than that!" her friend chided her from the left. Ed recognized it to be Erin.

Sighing and rolling her eyes, Savannah leaned back in her chair, and crossed her legs in a very business like manner. "I'm Savannah. People say that I'm very masculine. I take horse riding lessons every Sunday, unless it rains. I hate skirts to death, and wear steel toed boots. Would you like some fries with that?"

Ed blinked at her for a long moment, thoroughly surprised. "What're the boots for?"

"For kicking guys like you in the crotch." She grinned at him devilishly, and the rest of the class either burst out laughing, or gave her a look that was somewhere between disgusted and stunned.

"... Thanks for that," he muttered, suddenly eyeing the thick-soled, black, short-cut boots of hers like they might suddenly lunge out and bite him. They looked more suited to a construction area than an all-girls school. Clearing his throat, he looked down to the next name. "Erin?" "Hi, I'm Erin," she started, slowly, seeming to be having trouble with choosing her words. "I... well... ye-ah... I just like to draw and write a lot. Don't mind me!" She grinned innocently, showing braced teeth.

And so it went on like that, until all fourteen girls had been called upon and given a general summary of themselves. Ed kept glancing back over to Savannah's boots, before forcing himself to pay attention to whoever was speaking. Suddenly, he was very uncomfortable about being in this classroom. Half of them thought he was hot, and one of them wanted to kick his pride with steel.

"Alright, so," he said, after the last student had said her piece. "I hope you all brought your textbooks toda--" Before he could finish, a loud round of "No"s answered him from around the room. Ed sighed "Alright, how many of you actually brought them?"

Only half the hands went up. Luckily, it was enough to cover all seven tables. So, he had them share for the remainder of the class.

"Alright, so, somebody tell me where you left off with your last teacher." Ed flipped idly through his own book, sighing softly. Not a hint of alchemy. Sure, it was an unused science in this world, but he still missed it.

"With Newton's laws," somebody called from the back. "We were talking about opposite forces, and unbalanced stuff, and all that. We were supposed to watch a video today, too."

"Do you know where those videos are?" Okay, so Newton's laws weren't that bad... but he still missed alchemy.

"I do!" Wealth cried, rushing off to the back to dig around through a box full of VHS tapes. "Somebody get the TV set up!"

After exactly five minutes of shuffling, shifting, grumbling, and chair-moving, they started to watch the video. Ed took no mind to it, and instead sat down at his own desk, watching Savannah carefully as she pretended to be paying attention. He knew she was drawing, though. He made a mental note somewhere to buy twice as many lights as he'd originally planned to.

* * *

Ed's now got a fear of boots. Poor him... 


	7. Hair Fetishes

Sorry about the slow update. There were power shortages and cable problems.

* * *

"Good morning students, today is Tuesday, November 27th, day three," the chipper voice said over the intercom. "Don't forget, students, that today we start silent reading!"

Edward's class groaned, he included. There'd never been anything about silent reading when he'd gone over the papers yesterday! And by the looks of it, nearly half the class was bookless.

"Okay, I'm letting you guys off easy today, but only because I don't have a book either," Ed muttered, and with a cry of thank you, they began to work on other things, while Ed wrote a note to himself to visit the library after he'd bought the Christmas lights.

"Mister Duuune," someone whined, and when Ed looked up, he recognized it to be Wealth. "I need help with my algebraaaaa."

Without giving it much thought, Ed stood and made his way over to her, leaning his hands onto the desk to watch her. "Watchya need help with?" "How do you figure out the slope of a line on a graph?" She was chewing on her pencil while she stared up at him, with large eyes that Edward fan girls got whenever he was around them.

"Well, it's change in Y over change in X," he said, trying to ignore the look she was giving him.

Deciding against using the pencil she was currently chewing on(the incident with Savannah was still fresh in his mind), he took one out from his hair, which he kept just in front of the hair band in his ponytail. He'd only decided to put it there after he noticed the large number of students who chewed their pencils.

"So, you just need to calculate this," he scribbled down a formula on her paper, "by putting in whatever coordinates you used for X and Y respectively. Simple." He had a feeling that she wasn't really listening to what he said, just staring at him. Clearing his throat, he threaded the pencil back into his hair, and headed back to his desk, but was stopped by another call from across the room.

"Mister Dune!" a girl named Rachel yelled, "I don't get the assignment you gave us yesterday!"

It went on like that for nearly ten minutes. Every time Ed thought it was finally over, but when he got less than three steps from his desk, someone else asked for his assistance. Finally, a certain someone lost her patience with all the yelling.

"Quiet, already!" Savannah snarled from her corner, glaring viciously around the room. "Half of your questions are about _algebra_! He's our _science teacher_! Ask Ms. Lloyd, if you really must! Or only ask him if you really need help, not if you just want to stare at him!" Then she turned, going back to reading her book.

Silence fell across the room for the rest of the period, other than the scratching of pencils against paper. Ed was thankful to sit down, and, though he hated to admit it, he'd have to thank Savannah, too. She'd saved him a good five minutes of running around. However, when the bell rang for the period to end, she was the first one out, leaving before he could even stand up. Even Erin and Lauren stumbled after her, calling for her to _slow the heck down!_ The rest of the class left not too long after that, most of them giving him shy little waves as they did.

Shrugging, Ed looked at his schedule, and was glad to see that he had a free. However, he also noticed that it was his _only_ free, and that he'd be forced to have an early lunch that day. He decided he didn't like Day threes all that much. After locking up his room, he headed off through the campus at a leisurely pace, enjoying the greenery, till he came to the cafeteria. Inside, it was much more boisterous than the last time he'd seen the place, most of the tables packed full. The line was also quite long, but lucky for him, being a teacher gave him extra privileges, and he was able to cut to the front to order his daily chicken sandwich.

Turning from the counter, he glanced around the large room, looking particularly closely at the middle school table. There, he saw the three girls of his interest, and made his way over, unwrapping his sandwich as he went. When he reached them, he saw them hurriedly closing the same purple book he'd seen them with before, but still didn't question it.

"Thanks for what you said in class a little while ago, Savannah," he said, as he took a bite out of his sandwich, and ruffled the girl's hair with his other hand.

Growling, she turned her head slowly to glare at him, but then she shook her head, and all the hair just fell back into place. Blinking, Ed was tempted to try and muss it up again, but resisted. Mostly because Erin beat him to it.

"Savvy, your hair's weird," she laughed, shaking and tangling the golden locks to what appeared to be an irreversible state. To the amazement of Ed, however, another shake of her head put it back into line. "Just look at it! No matter what you do, it always just goes back silky smooth!"

"Stop messing with it, Erin," she growled. "You know I don't like people playing with it, even y--" she stopped when she felt another hand in her hair, but it wasn't Erin. "Yes, Mister Dune?" she growled, glaring at him over her shoulder again.

"Oh, nothing," he muttered, setting his sandwich down, and beginning to braid her hair absentmindedly.

Strangely, she didn't lash out at him, only kept grumbling and sighing as he smoothed out the hidden tangles, and weaving them together into a perfect braid down her back.

"Anyone got a spare hair tie?" he asked, glancing over at her friends. Wordlessly, Erin proffered the band, and he finished up the braid, smiling almost with satisfaction to himself. He'd always had a bit of a fetish for hair, particularly blonde.

"Are you done now?" the irritated teen growled him beneath his hand as he rested it on her head. "Or are you just going to stand there and keeping touching it?"

Blinking, Ed quickly drew his hand back, and grabbed up his sandwich, retreating for his classroom, where he'd hid himself for the rest of the period like the day previous. Still, even as he sat at his desk, munching away at his food, he couldn't help but crave for that hair again. It was so much like his own, but so unlike it. He could really see it, form it, turn it to whatever he wanted. The thing that really got him, though, was the fact that whenever he saw that girl for the rest of the day, she still had the same braid. It almost made him smile.

* * *

Ed starts to take notice of Savannah through something other than dislike. Ooh, drama. 


	8. Christmas Shopping and White Dogs

... The idea of Ed with a fetish for Savannah's hair makes me laugh for some reason. But it also seems to just... _work_. He always seems to concious about his own...

* * *

As Ed traversed the long sections of Holiday items, he thought of what he was going to do with the twenty packages of lights he'd chosen. Perhaps he'd just throw them all over his house so it _looked_ like he made more effort than he did. The only reason he needed these things was so he'd be able to get some payback after the night he'd had before. If Savannah came into school the next day, tired and irritable, he'd done his job well. Wait... she always seemed irritable. Tired would suffice.

"Do you need any help getting back to your car, sir?" the cashier asked him from behind a mouthful of gum, as she priced all of his items.

"Oh, no, I'll be fine," he answered, before paying, and leaving as quickly as he could. Suddenly, he felt glad he'd rented a truck.

When he reached home, he took a serious look at the roof. He walked slowly around the building, analyzing every slope and angle of it, trying to decide where and how to throw the lights on.

Luckily, after a bit of searching through the garage, he managed to find a suitable ladder. He haphazardly tossed the cords up onto whatever part of the house they could catch on, and hooked it up to one of his many extension cords(he'd made sure to pile up on those, too).

Three hours of effort later, and after nearly falling off the roof five times, Ed was able to stand back, and plug the cord in. He crossed his fingers as the lights blinked to life, hoping beyond hope that a fuse wouldn't blow. It was a good thing he was absolutely _full_ of luck that day. The relatively small home lit up brighter than those annoying snowmen next door, which were just beginning to be inflated from inside the house. Grinning, he headed inside, and went immediately to bed.

---------

With his alarm buzzing in his ear, the first thing Ed felt was annoyance at having to get up. It took a moment for him to remember that he was supposed to be excited today. Yes, today, he was going to be able to sit and watch Savannah fall asleep in class, and then yell at her for it. Maybe he'd go ahead and give her a detention... or let her off if she let him touch her hair again.

He went through all his morning chores with a happier feeling than usual. He tied up his hair, grabbed his keys, and headed outside, going confidently to his mailbox, and to the sight of an exhausted blonde across the driveway. Sadly for him, that sight didn't come.

"... Get 'im," Savannah growled, giving Ed the most hating look he'd ever received. For a time, he didn't know what she was talking to or about, until she felt a sharp pain in his ankle.

"Ow!" he shouted, jumping back, but he found himself on the ground instead. "What the hell!?" Looking down, he spied the source of his discomfort: a cat-sized, white, unusually fluffy dog, snarling and gnawing on his ankle. Ed always knew his dislike for animals was well placed.

A shadow descended over him, and turning his head up, he caught sight of sleep deprived Savannah stooping over him, corner of her lip twitching.

"Take down those lights of yours by midnight, or you'll face something worse than a sore ankle in the morning," she threatened, and her tone made Ed believe her without question.

"Y-yes," he stammered, completely forgetting the furry thing still biting his leg, and not at all liking the almost murderous look in her eyes. "S-soon as I g-get b-back."

"_Good_," she finished, grabbed her dog off his leg, and went back into the house as Ed inspected his ankle. It wasn't too damaged, really. Wasn't even bleeding.

When he got back from work that afternoon, he made good his word, throwing the lights down to the basement, where they'd probably never see the light of day again. At least, as long as he was living around in this neighborhood, with a particular girl living next door.

What really disappointed him, though, was that he hadn't been able to play with her hair again... She'd avoided him like the plague all day. He'd have to figure something out tomorrow. Those silky strands would soon be in his fingers again, no matter what it took. Even if it required begging.

Okay, maybe he wouldn't go that far.

* * *

I'd call them mailbox buddies. 


	9. Winner Takes the Gold

Short chapter ahoy!... On a side note, I think that maybe I'm making Ed a _little _too obsessive about hair. Am I right? Wrong?

* * *

The class didn't know what to think when they went in for homeroom that morning. For most of them, it had started out with Algebra. For a few others, it had been with open periods. It was common knowledge that Savannah was one of the lucky few who had a free, but she hadn't been seen all morning. Most thought she was just staying home, sick. Of course, Erin and Lauren had never known Savannah to be sick enough to have to stay home. Even when she was, she still came to school, and was normal other than an occasional cough or sneeze.

"What... are..." someone asked, blinking between the Ed, the chessboard, and Savannah. Most of the chess pieces had already been discarded, with the exception of a few bishops, castles, one queen, and a knight. It was difficult to tell who was winning.

"Shush," savannah snapped, staring intensely at the board. "I've got Ed in a check."

"Not for long," Ed responded, with a sly grin. He picked up a bishop, and casually knocked away the offending castle. "Now I've got you in a check. Oh, you can all sit down, but keep it quiet."

Not knowing what else to do, the class followed his instructions, watching the chess game with interest. The tension in the room mounted. After carefully examining the board, Savannah used her last remaining knight to take Ed's bishop, and grinned.

"You're not going to win, Dune," she whispered, in a low, chilly voice. "You've got nothing but that silly king and a queen left. Face it, you're done."

"I wouldn't say that just yet." With an evil smirk, Ed picked up his queen, and casually knocked away her king. "That knight was the only thing standing between me and victory."

"Curse you, Dune, curse you!" she snarled, jumping up from the chair, about to storm away to her usual seat, but Ed whistled for her, and she turned, glaring.

"Ah-ah-ah," he said, pointing at the chair. "Sit. I won, so I get what I want. And I'm going to keep getting it for as long as I want."

With a sigh, and the class in utter confusion, Savannah sat down, and Ed began to braid her hair, just as he'd done the day previous. At this, most of the class burst out laughing.

"You were playing it for the hair?!" they exclaimed, some of them falling right out of their chairs. Savannah glared down toward the floor, but Ed only shrugged at him.

"Hey, if she won, I wouldn't be able to touch her hair again. However, since I won, I get to play with it during every period I have with her. Which means I get to mess with it every. Single. Day." He'd finished the braid already, but didn't tie it up. Instead, he unraveled in again, and began to muss it up in a different way, this time trying a ponytail.

"Good morning students, today is Thursday, November 29th, Day Five," the intercom said to them, in the usual tone. However, it was lost on Ed's ears. He was too entranced by the beautiful golden strands, while their owner was blushing furiously out of embarrassment.

By the end of the period, Ed had managed to style it in five different ways, from a braid to a bun. He was a bit disappointed when she had to go, watching her leave with her friends as they began to tease her. Still, he consoled himself with the fact that he'd see her again soon. After all, he had her for the last two periods at the end of school for lab. For now, though, he had the ninth graders, and he took out the hard hat he'd brought in with him. They'd be experimented with gravity.

* * *

... What? I like chess... and it's the only thing I could think of! 


End file.
